Hong Kong police make biggest cocaine bust of year, finding HK$200 million worth of drug in scrap metal from South America
- Police say they intercepted two cargo containers from South American country Suriname at warehouse and discovered 225kg of cocaine bricks in scrap metal
- Two alleged members of drug-trafficking syndicate arrested at warehouse
Superintendent Wilson Tam of the force’s narcotics bureau said on Sunday that officers intercepted two cargo containers from South American country Suriname last week after receiving intelligence, and discovered 225kg (495lbs) of cocaine bricks – the most found this year by police.
“We’ve noticed that transnational drug syndicates have used international logistics to traffic large amounts of suspected cocaine into Hong Kong,” he said.
Tam said officers traced the cargo to a 10,000 sq ft warehouse in Ping Che, near Fanling, and spent more than 15 hours on Friday examining every single piece of scrap metal among the 40 tonnes for hidden drugs.
Chief Inspector Charm Yiu-kwong of the bureau said the force found 225kg of cocaine bricks in nine boxes made from I-shaped metal beams used in construction.
“The syndicate hired workers who we believe had no knowledge of the drugs to unload the metal on-site, with syndicate members controlling the operation,” Charm said.
Police said officers apprehended two workers and two alleged members of the syndicate at the warehouse, arresting the latter pair.
The cocaine had a street value of more than HK$200 million.